Ferrari 575M Maranello

Significant improvements to a superb car.

The 550 Maranello has now been around for six years, and while the engineers in Ferrari's racing department developed the Formula 1 car to make it a world champion, their colleagues in the production-car department have not remained idle either.

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After producing the remarkable 360 Modena, they got down to making the Maranello even more desirable. The first priority was more power and torque from the 485-bhp engine trans-mitted through the existing 6-speed rear transaxle, adapted to use the electronically controlled hydraulic F1 system. Increased shift smoothness also was a top priority.

The first step in im-proving the 65-degree V-12 was to increase cylinder bore by 1 mm to 89.0, and piston stroke by 2 mm to 77.0, raising capacity from 5.5 to 5.75 liters. The intake system volume was increased, the exhaust system was modified, as was the valve timing, while the latest Bosch Motronic replaces the older generation. All this allowed a slight increase in compression ratio from 10.8:1 to 11.0:1. The result is a 6-percent power increase to 515 bhp at 7250 rpm and a 3.5-percent increase in maximum torque to 434 lb.-ft. at 5250 rpm, but with a much improved torque curve, especially in the all-important 2500–3500-rpm range.

To adapt the 6-speed gearbox to the paddle-shift F1 control system and achieve the quickest possible shifts, a three-cone synchromesh is used on 1st and 2nd gears, twin-cone synchromesh being used on the four upper gears. Shifts can be performed without lifting the throttle pedal, and in downshifts, the engine speed is automatically raised to the correct level to avoid jerkiness. If the driver chooses the Sport mode, upshifts and downshifts are performed in less than a quarter of a second, provided they are performed at full throttle.

The F1 transmission is really worth having. As there is no clutch pedal, it makes driving less tiring and the powerful brakes can be operated with the left foot. The F1 transmission can also be used in the fully automatic mode, which has an adaptive program.

The Sport mode also modifies the program of the electronic shock-absorber control. In both the Normal and Sport modes, the damping force increases as speed rises, and in accordance with the messages of the suspension movement sensors. In the Sport mode, the overall suspension setting is firmer. This electronic damper control has been further developed to react within 80 milliseconds, compared with 180 milliseconds in the older model. It is very efficient, and with revised suspension settings and new lighter wheels, a surprisingly good low-speed ride is achieved as well as excellent high-speed body control.

Although all body panels, except the doors, are aluminum, with two people and a full fuel tank, the 575 Maranello weighs well over 4200 lb. But its agility and steering response are such that it feels much lighter. Performance is impressive, delivered so effortlessly by an engine that never feels stressed, even at its 7700-rpm limit.

The Maranello is now a genuine 200-mph car, with a factory-estimated 0–100 km/h (0–62 mph) time of 4.2 seconds, but none of its controls requires much force, and the brake response at low speeds seemed even more sensitive than necessary. A few laps of Ferrari's Fiorano track in the Sport mode with the traction control off confirmed the car's astonishing agility, its wonderful balance and excellent grip, the 45-percent limited-slip differential ensuring excellent control when accelerating out of low- and medium-speed bends.

Understeer is never a problem and the car's cornering attitude largely depends on the torque put through the rear wheels. Ferrari's chief test driver, Dario Benuzzi, says that the 575M is as fast around the Fiorano track as the much more extreme 360 Modena.

While the Pininfarina body design is virtually unchanged, the full leather interior trim is new. So is the dash design, with all instruments now grouped in a cluster dominated by a large tachometer and clearly legible through the new three-spoke leather-covered steering wheel, which is adjustable for reach and height.

Combined with the two very comfortable, electrically adjustable front seats (the driver's with three-position memory), the 575M provides an excellent driving position. Only the rather thick windshield pillars spoil the excellent all-round views from inside one of the most desirable cars currently produced.